Where You Belong
by LaXnoche24
Summary: AU Desmond is a puppy with a normal puppy life...I mean, if you define normal as being tested on all day everyday by animal testing corporation called Abstergo then yes, Desmond lives a pretty normal puppy life. Will he ever be free from this life? What'll happen then? Rated T for swearing and some animal cruelty Puppy- Desomnd, Dogs- Altaïr and Ezio
1. Chapter 1

_**Miniature Pinscher**_ - (dog)

_Also known as the"King of the Toys". Belongs to the Toy Group. Are good family companions and look out for their family, bravely challenging intruders with their bold, insistent bark. _

_They're naturally well groomed,proud, vigorous and alert. Characteristic traits are their hackney-like action, fearless animation, complete self-possession, and their spirited presence. Coat colors include red, stag red (red with black hairs), black with rust markings, or chocolate with tan. Size~10 inches to 12½ inches. 8.8 pounds to 11 pounds. Is small, but doesn't know it! Will be happiest with a family that treats them like a standard-sized dog. They're quick and active, with a lively curiosity. May be stubborn, but also very smart. _

_The Miniature Pinscher_ _is reported to include the Dachshund and Italian Greyhound among its ancestors. _

**Chapter One**

Desmond Miles was just as good as any of the other puppies that were in the cage with him. He was a Miniature Pinscher ("Min Pin" for short) who was 8-months-old (9-yrs-old in dog years). He had a nice black coat of fur with rust like colored fur covering the underside of his hind legs, his paws, part of his chest, most of his muzzle, and his eyebrows. Everything looked perfect about him except for a blob shaped patch of light brown fur that was located in the middle of his forehead. He may have heard the other puppies talk about how weird it was but he was pretty damn proud of his patch! It made him different from the other puppies therefore making him stick out more in order to catch the attention of any human who came to choose a puppy to take home with them. Or so he thought.

Desmond feels like he's been in this pet store forever! OK...more like two months...but hey, that's a little over a year in dog years! And if you ask him, that's a long fucking time to spend in a small pin with 6 other annoying pups who thought they could uses the bathroom anywhere at any time.

_'News flash...we have to fucking sleep in here!'_ Desmond exclaimed bitterly in his head. But it doesn't even matter because today, he was getting out of this shit hole (literally). He's sick and tired of living through this shit day by day (literally and metaphorically).

_The Past_

Ever since the nice old lady who used to own the pet store died two weeks after Desmond arrived, her nephew came and took over the store. He had short blond hair and wide eyes that were pale blue. He was more scrawny than other boy humans Desmond have seen. His whole being just screamed DORK! He wasn't a very nice human...scratch that...he was a total prick (still is)! From the very moment this douche layed eyes on Desmond it's like it became his mission to make Desmond's life a living hell.

At first, the douche kept calling him a bitch, which he, being the innocent puppy he is, thought it was an honest mistake that the human thought he was a girl. But as time went by, the guy kept calling him by that word along with other rude words. There were times where he didn't feed Desmond when he fed the others but, being naive again, Desmond believed the guy was just bad at counting how many puppies were actually in the pin. It wasn't until one fateful day that Desmond changed his way of thinking.

Desmond was minding his own business when he heard the chime on the door ring, signaling that someone had came into the pet store. Curious to see who came in, he got up and trotted to the other side of the pin. What he saw shocked him a bit. The not-so-nice owner was with a pretty girl human! She had long brown hair and pretty green eyes.

_'What is she doing with a human like him?' _Desmondwondered_. 'Maybe she's going to take a puppy home!'_ He thought hopefully. _'Oh, they're coming over! Look cute Desmond. You got this one for sure.'_ The Min Pin coached to itself mentally.

"AWWW...PUPPIES!" The pretty girl human squealed, making Desmond flinch back a little and causing the other puppies jump up.

"Can I hold one?" she asked the owner.

"I don't know -" he started.

"Pretty please~" she pleaded and then proceeded to make that worst puppy dog eyes Desmond has ever seen.

"Sure...why not." the not-so-nice owner replied with a shrug of his shoulders. The girl human squealed again and gave him a quick peck on the cheek making his face turn a light shade of red. She made her way to the pin with a huge smile on her face, high heels clacking the whole way. Desmond winced.

_'Maybe I can wait for another human to come in and take me home with them.' _And with that thought, Desmond made his way back to the other side of the pin to lay down while the other pups ran over to receive attention from the, now deemed annoying, girl human.

"They're all so cute" she cooed. "Especially that one! I want to hold that one!" Desmond heard her high pitched voice exclaim above the pin forcing him to flaten his ears against his head and close his eyes. He could feel a head ache coming on.

"That one's kind of a pest. Why don't you choose another one" he heard the owner say.

**"Yea, choose me!"**

**"No me!" **Desmond heard the other pups shout but it just sounded like barking to the humans. This, he knew already.

"No, I'm going to pick up this little guy" she stated as her final decision.

**"Aww, com'on. Choose anyone else besides the weirdo. **That made Desmond's head shoot up.

_"Who's the weirdo?" _Desmond wondered as he turned his head. All he saw though, was a giant claw with red nails coming towards him and what do you do when a giant claw is coming towards you? Right...you bite the hell out of said claw! And that's exactly what Desmond did which apparently wasn't a good idea.

"AHHHH!" He heard the pretty girl human scream.

"Shit! Are you OK?" The owner asked the girl. Worry was etched on his features. "Let me go get some Band-aids and-"

"FUCK THE BAND-AIDS AND GET A FREAKIN MUZZLE FOR THAT LITTLE BEAST!" the girl human hollered holding her slightly bleeding hand. Oh, so it wasn't a claw Desmond bit. Oops.

The owner just nodded and ran off to the back if the store.

"Now you're going to get what you deserve mutt" the girl human spat at him.

**"Hold on...it was your claw like hand that was in my face in the first place!" **Desmond bit back even though he knew she couldn't understand him. **"It's not my fault that I felt like I had to protect myself."**

Just as he finished his rant, the owner came back with a black muzzle in his hand.

"Ok, I got it. Are you sure you don't want a band-aid?"

"Chris, if you don't put that thing on that mutt right now, I swear I'll...!" she said impatiently.

The not-so-nice owner, now deemed Chris, quickly moved towards the pin. He made a grab for Desmond but the Min Pin snapped at him.

**"I know you're not about to put that **_**thing **_**on me!" **shouted Desmond. **"You...you...MUTHAFUCKING CUNT! I GAVE YOU THE BENIFET OF THE DOUBT BUT NOW I SEE YOU'RE JUST A PRICK WHO'S BEING USED BY THIS DUMBER THAN DIRT SKANK! IF YOU THINK YOU'RE PUTTING THAT **_**THING**_** ON ME, YOU HAVE ANOTHER THING COM- hmpff?!"**

"Oh, shut up!" the prick of an owner cut him off by strapping the black muzzle over his muzzle. Desmond could hear the other puppies laughing behind his back but he just kept his head down. He then snapped when he heard the prick and the skank laughing at him.

_"I will get the hell out of here, even if it's the last thing I do!" _ Desmond promised furiously to himself, trying hard to keep the hot tears of embarrassment from spilling out of his eyes.

_The Present_

Today was the day he was going fulfill that promise he made to himself 3 weeks prior to today. He had come up with the perfect plan to get the next human who came for a puppy to buy him. All he needs is a human. At that very moment, the door chime rang through out the store. Bingo! Two humans walked into the store, one of them calling out to the prick of an owner.

Desmond peered over the wall of the pin to get a better look at the humans. He saw the ownerwalk up to a motherly looking girl human who had her blond hair in a tight bun and a older looking boy human who had gray hair. The girl human looked tired and...was that _guilt _Desmond saw in her eyes?

_'Why does she look guilty?" _Desmond wondered. He turned his attention to the older boy human who looked rather impatient at the moment.

"We've come to purchase a puppy." the girl human said to the owner. Said prick, brought them over to the pin.

_'Time for the plan to take action.' _Desmond thought as he got into position.

"Here are all the puppies we have." said the owner once they were all peering over the edge of the pin.

"Do hurry up and choose one Ms. Stillman. I don't have all day." the old human snapped while looking at his watch.

"Right." Desmond heard the girl human, now known as Ms. Stillman, say under her breath as she looked down at the crowded puppies barking up at her, trying to catch her attention.

_'Perfect!'_ thought the Min Pin as he got ready for a running start. He aimed for th pile of unaware puppies and took a deep breath. _'Well...here goes nothing' _was Desmond's last thought before he sprinted the little distance between him and the puppy pile. Right before he ran into a bunch of puppy asses, he jumped.

_'All I have to do is land at the top of this pile and...oh no!' _Desmond gasped._'SHIT! I over estimated the height of this jump!' _Desmond swore inwardly as he bounced off two of the puppies' heads, who yelped from surprise, then he tumbled over the edge of the pin towards the tiled floor. He closed his eyes and waited for the pain that was sure to come once he crashed into the floor but instead, he felt something catch him and lift him up. He opened his eyes to see big blue ones staring back at him.

"Good catch Ms. Stillman. He's perfect and easy to spot! Now lets buy him and get going. I have places to be." The older human said quickly while poking Desmond in the patch on his forehead.

"But sir, I don't think-" the prick of an owner started.

"Yes, you probably don't." The older boy human cut him off. "Just give us the papers to sign and the pup's name, OK?" He said to the owner with a tight smile.

"His name is Desmond Miles" the owner said through gritted teeth before leading the older human to the front counter where the ownership papers were located.

"Vidic, I don't believe this-"

"MS. STILLMAN! I don't pay you to voice your beliefs. Now come along and bring the mutt with you." The older human, now known as Vidic, said to Desmond's savior with no room for discussion.

The yell made Desmond flinch hard but he kept his head up. He was finally getting out of this damn place after all this time! He then heard the girl human holding him sigh and begin to walk towards the counter. He looked up at her and she looked down at him.

He saw that guilt in her eyes again.

**End of Chapter One**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2- **_**Reality Check**_

_'THINKING'_

"HUMAN TALKING"

**"ANIMAL TALKING"**

_Desmond's POV_

"That took more time than it should have." I heard Vidic, one of my new owners grumbled as he walked briskly through the parking lot. "Now we're about an hour behind schedule. Do speed it up Ms. Stillman; we're a little pressed for time." He snapped at the nice girl human who was struggling to hold me up in one hand and a dog cage filled with a bag of dog food and a doggy bed in the other.

**"Hey, I don't see you helping her out!" **I bark at the older human. **"Last time I checked, boy humans are supposed to carry things for the girl humans, not the other way around." **I said, recalling the times I've seen boy humans hold the bagged items that their girl human companions had purchased at the pet store. **"Besides, who cares how long it took? All that matters is that I'm finally out of that horrid place. Right?" **I asked, tilting my head up to my second owner.

"I'm moving as fast as I can!" She snapped at the older boy human, not even acknowledging me. I look back down and see that we're approaching one of those big shiny box like things that have wheels on it.

"Well, move faster." Vidic stated firmly while getting into the shiny box-on-wheels. I heard my girl owner sigh before opening a door on the shiny box-on-wheels and setting the cage in the back of it. After closing the door, she then moved around the shiny box and opened another door before getting into it. She sat down in a seat and put me in her lap before strapping a belt around her. I heard a click and saw the belt tighten around my human.

_'It's trying to hurt her!' _I panicked for a brief second before my girl human loosed its hold. _'OK, she alright...phew.'_

I then heard jingling. I snapped my head towards the noise and saw my other human with a bunch of keys in his hand. _'Wow...I totally forgot he was here for a minute." _I thought before taking a look around the box that we're in. It did look half bad. It actually looked pretty good. _'I got to get a better look around' _was my first thought before something roared loudly. I whimpered and shook a bit at the sound. I then felt something grab me and next thing I knew, I'm being pressed against something soft.

"Aww, is the little puppy afraid of the big bad car?" I look up to see my girl human owner cooing at me.

_'Car? Is that what this shiny box is called?' _I thought. All of sudden, we started moving! _'Oh my God! What's going on?! Am I going to die! No...I'm too young to die!' _ I clung to my human for dear life all the while having a mental break down.

"Pathetic." I heard my other owner scoff from the seat next to us. I look over to see his hands turning a wheel that was in front of him._ 'Geez...what the hell is his problem?'_

"Vidic, he's just a puppy! It's perfectly normal for him to get scared easily." Ms. Stillman argued.

"Just makes him more pitiful than he already is, if that mark on his forehead is anything to go by." That got me to growl._ 'Seriously...what did I ever do to get on this guy's shit list?!'_

"Oh?! You understood that?" he inquired, looking down at me out of the corner of his eye. My only answer was a snort. I hear my girl owner gasp. "Interesting." Vidic drawled, turning his vision back to the large window in front of us. I don't know if that was a complement or bad sign.

I turn to look out of the window next to the seat that me and my human are in. I see a lot of blurred shapes zooming past us...or are we zooming past them? I try to get a better look but my owner is still holding me in her not-so-tight-but-firm grip. I struggle a bit until she finally gets the hint and let's go of me.

"Hmm...What's wrong Desmond?" She asked worriedly. I answer by putting my face against the glass of the window. "You want to stick your head out the window? OK." Was the only warning I got before the glass started to slide down my face. I stumbled back a little but regained my balance quickly. I heard her giggling...well, more like felt it because her whole body was vibrating. I sniffed, feeling a bit dejected. I turned my head and went back to the window, sticking my head out. _'I guess I'll let I slide since you're my favorite out the two of you' _I thought. No point in saying it, knowing she can't understand me. So why waste my breath.

"You shouldn't get too attached to him, considering the situation Ms. Stillman." I heard Vidic voice in an undertone. I look up at her and see sadness engulf her features.

**"What's so bad about the situation?" **I yipped at her. But my question landed on deaf ears.

"I know" was all she said before turning to look out the window and remaining silent

_Two Hours Later_

I woke up to the sound of movement.

_'When did I fall asleep?' _I wondered, still barely awake_. _But I quickly dismissed the question when I felt myself being lifted up, yet again. I was goingto ask 'what's going on' until I realised that the _car _had come to a complete stop and that we were getting out. That had me up and awake quick.

_'Are we here? Are we finally at my new home?!' _I speculated excitedly while taking a look a the area that was around me. I was still in Ms. Stillman's arms but she was more tense now. I wonder why. I then heard Vidic voice bounce off the walls of the dim lighted area that possessed many different types of shiny boxes-on-...I mean.._cars. _

"Grab the materials from the back seat and the dog then bring them all up to the room next to Subject 16. Park the car while you're at it." He instructed to three boy humans who were all dressed alike in white suits. "Come along Ms. Stillman; we have plenty of work to do" was all he said before he turned, heading towards a big gray door.

I took my eyes off of Vidic and turned to see one of the boy humans were trying to make a grab for me. I snarled at him, prepared to bite if I had to. That is, until I was pulled back out of the guy's reach.

"I'll take him up." I heard my girl owner say to the boy human sternly. He just nodded stiffly and turned around and walked back to the car we got out of.

"Ms. Stillman! Today please." My other owner's said impatiently.

"I'm coming." she called to him. Turning around from the boy human, we made our way towards Vidic who was inside a little room, tapping his foot with his arms crossed. Wow...can you say _BITCH_?And I'm not talking about my mom.

We walked into the little room and the doors closed behind us with a _"ding". _Then the room jerked and we started going up. If it wasn't for my owner's tight hold on me, I would have jerked out of her arms. _'I really need to stop getting scared so easily' _I mentally chided myself.

"I swear, you can be slower than a turtle on its back at times, Ms. Stillman." Vidic ridiculed in monotone. "Keep that kind of pace up and you might find yourself out of a job."

**"Hey! She's doing her best. Cut her some slack would ya!" **I bark at him. He just raises an eyebrow at me. _'I'm really starting to hate this guy.'_

"Do I make myself clear?" He says firmly.

"Yes sir." She says just before the room stops moving and the doors open with another _"ding"_.

We walk out into a hallway with many gray doors. I notice, as we pass by that all the doors have numbers on them. We start to slow down and I feel Ms. Stillman tense up even more, if that's even possible. We finally come to a stop in front of one of those doors with the number on it.

_'One...and seven. That's seventeen.'_ I quickly read the number on the door before it slid open. Behind the door was a stark white room that was so white, I had to blink a couple of times to get my eyes to adjust. When I could finally see, I saw that the room had my doggy bed in it already along with a huge gray rug that had a ball and a teddy bear on it. There was a doggy bowl with food and water in it over to the side.

_'How the hell did all of this get up here before we did?!' _I questioned in astonishment. As I kept looking around, I felt myself being lowered down to the ground. As soon as my paws hit the ground, I took a few steps into the room to get a better look.

"Welcome to your new room Mr. Miles" I heard Vidic say from behind me. "We hope it's to your liking." I could heard him say with false sincerity.

**"I guess it's OK." **I said with shrug of my shoulders. **"A little **_**bland **_**for me but I'll live" **I joked, turning around to face my owners. What I saw made my face drop and my heart beat faster. They were closing the door and leaving me in here by myself! I ran back to the door but it closed all the way right before I got there.

**"YOU CAN'T JUST LEAVE ME IN HERE! ALONE!" **I barked and whined as I tried to scratch through the door.

"Now, now Mr. Miles. Be a good boy for daddy and try to be quiet." I heard Vidic say with slight amusement through the door even though it was a little muffled.

_'FOR DADDY!? Yep, it's official...i hate this guy with a burning passion now.' _I thought heatedly.

"Have a good night Mr. Miles." Was the last thing I heard from Vidic before I heard his shoes walking away.

_'The hell I will.' _I thought bitterly.

"I'm so sorry Desmond" I heard Ms. Stillman whisper, sadness and guilt lacing every syllable, before I heard her shoes tap away from the door and everything became quiet.

**"What is she sorry for?" **I said out loud to myself. **"What have I gotten myself into?! No, calm down Desmond. They're going to come back and get you in the morning. There's no need to get paranoid. Everything is going to be fine. Everything is going to be perfectly fine." **I muttered to myself as I paced back and forth over the rug.

A loud snort sounded through the silence causing me to freeze. I looked towards the left wall, where the sound came from, slowly. What would have turned me pale if I was a human wasn't the fact that the wall was see-through, but what was on the other side of the wall.

In the room next door to mine was a large dog, or what I thought was a dog, because all of the bandages and stitches were really disfiguring whatever it was. Me and _it_ made eye contact and my heart stopped. I could tell I looked terrified by the way my fur was standing up, my eyes wide, and my body shaking slightly. _It_ smirked at me then smiled, showing me its teeth...or...what's left of them!

_'WHAT TYPE OF FUCKED UP PLACE IS THIS?!'_

**End of Chapter 2** _(TBC)_


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3- ****_Meeting A Friend_**

_'THINKING'_

"HUMAN TALKING"

**"ANIMAL TALKING"**

**WYB**WYB**WYB**

**_Anatolian Shepherd_**_- (Dog)_

_ Large, rugged and powerful, with a superior ability to protect livestock. Belongs to the Working Group. _

_ Because he was bred to make independent decisions while working, owner commands may not be followed. Instinctively protective, the Anatolian is a calm, reserved breed around strangers, showing his loyal and loving nature only to his family. _

_ Size~ 29 inches, 110 pounds to 150 pounds. The breed's coat can be short (one inch) or rough (approximately four inches), with all color patterns and markings, including fawn and brindle._

_ Alert, intelligent, and observant. Instinctively protective, they are courageous and highly adaptable. They're also very loyal and responsive but highly territorial because they are born natural guards. Responsiveness with animation is not characteristic of the breed. Overhanding would be discouraged._

_ The Anatolian Shepherd Dog is a guardian breed that originated in Turkey more than 6,000 years ago. The breed entered the United States in the 1950's._

**WYB**WYB**WYB**

The dog...or what Desmond believed was a dog, sat up from its lounging position and looked him square in the eyes. Desmond was able to get a better view at the _dog_ in the room next door when it was sitting up like that. It had light brown fur...or patches of fur that we obscured by bandages that were wrapped around it's midsection and left shoulder. Some, to which, had dried blood on them.

_'Yep, that is definitely a dog. _Desmond thought to himself as he kept staring._ 'You know...just a really deformed looks-like-you-got-into-a-freak-ceiling fan-accident, type of dog. _

The other dog shifted a bit as if it were trying to get comfortable while having this staring contest with the Min Pin. That's when Desmond caught sight of it. There was nothing but a stump left in place of the other's right hind leg. Desmond felt his eyes grow wider and wondered how they haven't fallen out of his head yet..

**"You should take a picture kid. It'll last longer." **the other dog said with a crooked smirk. **"I mean damn. You've been staring at me with those fish eyes for almost ten minutes. Don't you ever blink?" **Desmond blinked once he heard that. He sputtered for a second making the smirk on the other dog's muzzle widen.

**"What's wrong pup? Cat's got your tongue?" **The canine asked with mock innocence. Desmond closed his eyes and took a deep breath in order to get himself situated.

**"Umm...no...I mean...uh..hi?" **Desmond winced at how he sounded. _'What the hell was that?! I sounded so stupid.' _Desmond thought. _'HI?! Hi is the only thing you could think of to say Desmond!? Really!?' _To his surprise, the larger dog started laughing...well more like cackling.

**"You've been...haha..staring..hic... at me for...for ten minutes Runt, looking...pfft...looking like you're about to...hahaha...piss yourself at any second...pfft...just to say HI to me...hic..?!" **The dog in the other room was cackling so hard that it had fallen on its back, stub of a hind leg wiggling in the air, and seemed to be struggling to breath properly.

Desmond frowned at the word _Runt. _He isn't that short. **"Well...no. T-that's not what I wanted to say. I mean...I did want to introduce myself! But..uh..yea." **Desmond tried to explain, mentally slapping himself for stuttering.

**"Well then Runt. Say what you ****_wanted_**** to say****_._**** Spit it out 'cuz I want to hear it." **The damaged dog had stopped laughing and pressed its face against the glass of the see-through wall so quick that it shocked the Min Pin quiet for a good minute.

**"I..umm" **Desmond began. **W-where are we?**

The other dog snorted before answering. **"You mean to tell me that you came along with these people not knowing what they do?" **The larger dog asked while moving it's face from the wall and sitting on its one and a half hind legs. Desmond just tilted his head to the side at they question. "**Poor kid" **the dog whispered to itself before continuing. **"Anyways, to answer your question. We are at a place called Abstergo aka Testing Facility aka H..E..Double Hockey Sticks for us animals here." **

**"Us animals? T-there are others here?" **Desmond asked trying to ignore the fear that was sitting in the back of his mind.

**"Of course there are others. Didn't you read your number on the door before you came in here?" **The other questioned.

Desmond thought for a second before he responded.** "It said...uhh..seventeen. So you must be...sixteen?" **Desmond stated tentatively, remembering Vidic say something about a room next to Subject 16.

**"No way! They didn't tell you my name?!" **Sixteen barked loudly, making Desmond cringe. Sixteen's face soften at the sight of the puppy shrinking back from his loud bark. **"Sorry about that Runt. Didn't mean to scare you." **he apologized quietly.

Desmond sat up straighter and looked at the dog that was in the room beside his. He looked past the other's scared and stitched face, right into their eyes. He saw the sincerity in them and a tiny bit of...concern?!

_'Maybe I'm just seeing things.' _He thought to himself. But none the less, the look in those eyes made him feel more comfortable talking with the other canine. He still didn't like the new name Sixteen gave him.

**"It's Desmond, Desmond Miles. Not ****_Runt." _**Desmond said with a huff. **"And I wasn't that scared. You just caught me off guard, y'know." **He shrugged.

**"Hmm...I was thinking Spot or Bull's Eye as pet names 'cuz of that funny lookin' blob that's smack dab in the middle of your forehead" **the other dog smirked.

Desmond growled and opened his mouth to respond but was cut off.

** "Clay Kaczmarek" **Sixteen said curtly.

**"W-what?"**

Sixteen rolled his eyes. **"Clay Kaczmarek is my name." **He said very slowly as if he were talking to a child or someone who was just plain simple; which he basically was if he thought about it.

**"Oh! Umm..Desmond Mi-...wait...I already said that, didn't I?" **Desmond asked more to himself. **"What the fuck is up with me today? I can't seem to hold a decent conversation for shit!" **He growled at himself, forgot about the other's presence all together.

**"Well I don't know about you Runt" **Clay started, smirking at the glare Desmond threw his way for using that name. **"but this is the most ****_decent_**** convo I've had for a while. Seeing how Fifteen is...well...never mind. Just forget that, I didn't say anything 'kay?" **Sixteen said with a crooked smiled. **"How 'bout we finish another round of 20 questions? **Clay suggested.** "'Cuz I can see it on your face that you still got some more to ask"**

Desmond closed his eyes and tried to come up with a question. There were a lot of things that he wanted to ask but he couldn't seem to think of anything because of the jumbled mess of thoughts running around inside his head.

_'How long has he been here? 'How long will I be here? Why did this happen to me? Why is he being so nice to me? What the hell did they do to him? What happen to his leg?' _Desmond wanted to ask all of these questions and more but all that came out was,

**"So..um..what type of dog are you...or..were you?"**

**"I'm still the same dog, well mostly" **Clay chuckled motioning to his stump of a leg. **"Just a bit banged up. Lucy patched me up as best as she could." **

**"Lucy?"**

**"She's Vidic's assistance. Y'know, the blond chick with the bun who carried you in here?" **Desmond opened his mouth to respond but the larger dog cut him off. **"Anyways, I'm an Anatolian Shepherd. I ****_was_**** a guard dog for a farmer out in Idaho until the bastard tried to have me neutered." **Clay shuddered as if he were reliving the moment. **"But I gave that bastard what he was askin' for." **he said with an almost demonic smirk.

Desmond shivered at the look on the other's face. It looked scarier than he believed it should have due to the horrible scars.

**"Do i want to know what you did to the poor guy?" **The Min Pin asked, preparing for the worst answer he could possibly get.

**"I nearly killed the bastard!" **Sixteen howled with laughter. **"I bit and tore his skin like it was paper! I'm surprised they were able to recognize him, let alone save his life. **He howled even louder causing Desmond to look down and whimper.

**"I really didn't need that mental image." **Desmond whined under his breath.

Clay stop laughing so fast that Desmond thought he had killed over. Looking up to make sure that wasn't true; he was taken aback by the Anatolian Shepherd's glare. A glare that was being directed towards him.

**"Wha-"**

**"Oh, I'm sorry." **Clay said bitterly. **"I didn't know defending yourself from getting your ****_dick_**** chopped off was frowned apron." **He snarled.

**"W-wha are you-" **Desmond tried to say before he was cut off again.

**"I mean seriously! Who would've thought I'd get myself locked up? **Clay asked to no one in particular. **"Let me tell ya, I sure as hell didn't!"**

**"Clay, you have to calm down." **Desmond made an effort to soothe the larger dog.

**"I wasn't a family dog from the beginning and they could tell from my ****_'vicious' _****behavior." **Clay was up and pacing...more like hobbling in the room next door. **"'Cuz of that little miss hap, they sent me HERE! They said they wanted me and my attitude fixed. WELL LOOK HOW FIXED UP I AM NOW!" **he all but roared. **"WHO THE FUCK IN THEIR RIGHT MIND WANTS TO LOOK AT SOMETHING LIKE ME DESMOND?! HUH...DESMOND?! WHO?!**

Desmond shrunk back and flattened his ears against the thunderous bark of the Anatolian Shepherd.

**"I don't know." **he squeaked.

**"EXACTLY!" **the other dog shouted. **"I'm what even the toughest, meanest, bad ass muthafucker sees in their nightmares! THEIR NIGHTMARES DESMOND! And it's all THEIR FAULT! AND THEY WONDER WHY I FIGHT BACK EVERY TIME!" **Sixteen drew in a breath before continuing. **"JUST WAIT RUNT. YOU'LL SEE WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT SOON ENOUGH!"**

Desmond had had enough of this shit! He shot up and raced to the see through wall before yelling back at the larger dog.

**"JUST WHO THE HELL ARE YOU TO THROW YOUR ANGER AT ME?!" **he exclaimed. "**I DIDN'T ASK TO HEAR YOUR LIFE STORY OR YOUR FUCKED UP PROBLEMS! YET YOU BARKED AT ME LIKE I WAS THE ONE WHO HURT YOU! BUT I'M NOT!" **he finished a little out of breath. **"Besides, I don't think you look that scary. Sure, you're not so easy on the eyes but that doesn't mean I can't like you." **Desmond said with shrug.

Clay went quiet after that and just turned his back to Desmond and laid down. He didn't say anything to Min Pin for a long time; Desmond started to forget about the whole ordeal as he got ready for bed.

**WYB**WYB**WYB**

_Next Morning_

Desmond shot up from his place on his doggy bed and looked around hysterically. He was breathing hard and shaking slightly due to the nightmare he just experienced.

_'Damn...I can't even remember what it was about.' _Desmond thought as only bits and pieces of the nightmare flashed through his mind. He shook his body, as if trying to shake off the fear the fighting dream left behind, before walking over to the doggy bowl filled with water and food. He lapped at the water tiredly, not really having the appetite to eat anything considering the situation he was in. Which reminded him about his friend in the room next door.

_'Should I say friend? Does he think of me as a friend? Maybe companion? Comrade or buddy? Chum is a possibility...right?' _Desmond mused as he turned to look at Sixteen.

The Anatolian Shepherd was still laying down, most likely asleep, with his back towards Desmond. Did the Min Pin really offend the larger dog so much? He just sighed before turning his attention back to the water in front of him.

**"Y'know, no one's ever said that to me." **Clay stated with his back still facing Desmond.

Not being prepared for the sudden statement from the presumably sleeping dog; Desmond said the first thing that came to mind.

**"Uhh"**

The larger dog rolled its eyes. **"I swear Runt. You just want to hear me repeat myself, don't you? Fine then." **He huffed as he got up and turned himself so that he was facing Desmond. He flopped down on his stomach before speaking again. **"I said, no one's ever said that to me."**

**"Exactly what is it is it that no one's ever said to you?" **Desmond asked, confused as to what Clay is talking about.

**"No one's ever said that...that they like me before." **The lager dog whispered, bowing his head to look at the floor.

Desmond was shocked. _'How could no one like him? Sure he looks a bit scary and kinda has a strange sense of humor, but i think he's cool.' _Desmond said mentally...or so he thought he did.

**"Oh stop~, you're making me blush. **Clay teased with a chuckle.

**"Did I say that out loud?" **Desmond blinked rapidly at Clay. The other canine just nodded, looking away from the shorter dog. **"Well...I meant what I said. Down to the last word. **

**"You're just saying that." **Sixteen sighed

**"Fine then, you're not cool." **The Min Pin said nonchalantly.

**"What did you say Runt?!" **Clay growled out.

**"Don't get mad at me! That's what happens when you don't accept a damn compliment! **Desmond yapped back. Clay's eyes widened before he looked down again.

**"You're right. I'm..I'm sorry" **he apologized to Desmond softly. He heard a tap on the wall in front of him. Looking up, he was surprised to Desmond much closer than he was before.

**"Hey, I really did mean what I said about you." **Desmond started. **"I've never had friends before and you're the only person..um..dog that ever took the time to talk to me. So what if you look fucked up." **He recieved a glare for that. **"The point is that I consider you my friend and therefore, I do ****_like_**** you. As I said before, I think you're a cool dog. **He finished with a lop sided smile.

Clay blinked up at him and looked into his eyes in search of the lie that wasn't there. He looked at Desmond for a while and Desmond never let go of his gaze.

**"Thank you Desmond. I-I like you too." **The Anatolian Shepherd said almost shyly. Desmond's smile only grew bigger at the statement. He opened his mouth to respond but the sound of the door slamming open cut him off.

"Good morning Mr. Miles. Did you sleep well?" Vidic asked in an uncharacteristically cheery voice. Desmond just snorted. "Ah, that's good because you have a long day ahead of you." he said as two boy humans wearing those white uniforms walked into the room. Desmond backed away from the three humans, getting an uneasy feeling about the situation. "Grab him." Vidic instructed to the two boy humans. Before they could even take a step closer to Desmond, Clay began barking thunderously.

**"DON'T TOUCH HIM YOU PIECE OF SHITS! HE'S TO YOUNG FOR YOUR FUCKED UP EXPERIMENTS! HOW CAN YOU ALL EVEN THINK OF DOING SOMETHING SO HORRIBLE TO A PUPPY! A ****_PUPPY _****YOU SICK BASTARDS! **he howled. Desmond heard a gasp from behind Vidic and noticed that Ms. Stillman..er..Lucy was also here.

"I've never seen Clay act like this!" she said stunned. "Maybe something changed. Should we take him back in to see what happened?" She asked tentatively towards Vidic with a tiny glint of hope for Desmond shinned in her eyes.

"Hmm, perhaps we should." Vidic said, snapping his fingers. The two boy humans turned and left his room, heading to the room next door. Desmond's eyes widened as he realized what was happening.

**"CLAY! WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!?" **he yelled at his friend.

**"WHAT DO YOU THINK I'M DOING?! I'M SAVING YOUR LIFE!" **Clay barked back as the two humans entered his room.

**"B-but...WHY?!" **Desmond shouted, feeling tears build up in his eyes as one of the humans wrapped a rope around Clay's neck and his friend didn't even try to fight back.

**"Because...I always wanted a friend. And now that I got one, I won't let anything bad happen to them if I can do something about it." **He said with a sad smile as they dragged him towards the door.

"Let's go Ms. Stillman." Desmond heard Vidic say. "Consider yourself lucky Mr. Miles. Seems like you get another day off." he said but Desmond didn't even acknowledge him as he was too busy watching his friend being drag out of the door like a sack of potatoes. He heard Lucy apologize again before his door closed shut.

**"I guess I'll see you around Runt." **Clay said, trying to chuckle but ended up coughing due to the rope around his neck. The sight caused Desmond's tears to run free. **"*cough* Hmm..maybe not."**

**"C-Clay?...hic" **Desmond whimpered.

**"Goodbye Desmond." **The Anatolian Shepherd said sorrowfully. One lone tear fell down his cheek as he was dragged out completely, the door slamming shut behind him and his captors.

That was the last time Desmond ever saw Clay Kaczmarek.

**End of Chapter 3 **_(TBC)_

**WYB**WYB**WYB**

_Author's Notes_

So sorry for the late update. *Bows deeply* oTL

Grades for report cards were due on Friday so I spent most of the week turning in late work and/or retaking test in order to raise my grade. Got my report card today and got 4 C's! Not so bad in my opinion. *shrugs* But that's what happens when you do everything at the last minute.

YAY! FOR PROCRASTINATION!

Anyways, hope this chapter turned out well. Tell me your thoughts on it 'cuz I love reading comments. :)

[#]Hello this is her Editor (sister) also if you can review and tells us what she can improve on, that would be nice. Thanks for reading [#]

**_REVIEW...I love Reviews! :D_**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4-**_** Introducing The A.N.I.M.U.S**_

_'THINKING'_

"HUMAN TALKING"

**"ANIMAL TALKING"**

_****WYB**WYB**WYB****_

_Later That Night (Desmond's POV)_

The Min Pin puppy, Desmond Miles, has been pacing a hole in the floor ever since this morning. The incident that had took place isn't something that can be easily forgotten nor easily ignored. I mean, they took his one and only friend for fuck's sake! Snagged him up like a fat pig in a pig pin, ready to be turned into bacon, and drag him out like he wasn't even worth the dirt under their shoes.

_'And I couldn't do a damn thing to stop them!' _Desmond thought angrily as the scene from this morning replayed in his mind for the forty-third or is it forty-fourth time? It doesn't even matter, the fact still remains that he has no idea what the humans plan on doing to his friend.

_'What else could they possibly do to the poor dog?' _Desmond wondered, the frown on his face deepening. _'They already chopped his leg off! What else could they do?! What else __**would**__ they do?!' _

The Min Pin's pace quickened as many images of what the humans _could _do to his larger companion flashed through his mind. His legs and paws were crying out in protest to his constant tread but he didn't care. He had to keep himself busy, had to keep moving, had to keep wondering why he hasn't drilled a hole in the floor yet. He had to do anything that insured he wouldn't be still or his mind wouldn't go silent. For if either one was to happen: the fear, the dread, the hopelessness, and guilt that he was suppressing within the back of his conscience, would hit him at full force.

_'It's OK Desmond. Everything is going to be just fine. Clay will come back in the morning with that creepy smile on his face and call you Runt as his way of saying hello. Just you wait! Everything is going to be FINE!' _the puppy mentally tried to reassure itself but was failing miserably. He just couldn't shake the feeling that something terrible has happened to the Anatolian Shepherd.

Desmond's feeling only intensified when the door to the now vacant room of Subject 16 opened and two humans who were dressed in those white suits, a boy human with brown hair and a girl human with black hair and slit eyes, came in and began taking Clay's things out of the room.

**"W-what are you doing?!" **Desmond asked the humans panicky as he stopped his pacing to jog up to the transparent wall and watch the humans closely. They didn't even take a one second to glance at him as they continued their task of cleaning out the room. Desmond watched in horror, the fear he felt stunning him silent, as the room became empty (well, emptier than it already was). As the girl human grabbed the last of the Anatolian Shepherd's belongings, his doggy bed, Desmond seemed to be able to find his voice at last.

**"NO! What the hell is going on?! What happened to Clay?!" **He yipped at the girl human. She stopped and turned to look at him but said nothing. She wore the same sad expression of pity on her face that Lucy wore whenever she looked at him. But he didn't need _pity _right now. He needed answers! **"TELL ME!" **He cried out a bark that sounded like a blend of a bark and a whine.

"Poor puppy" the girl human sighed. The pity in her eyes was shining brighter than it had before. "He must miss his friend. Too bad he won't be coming back." She said the last sentence softly while casting her head down took look at the doggy bed in her arms. Desmond's blood ran cold after hearing that. It wasn't hard to figure out what she meant when she said, _"he won't be coming back"_.

_'It can't be true! Clay...Clay can't be...can't be-'_. Desmond felt nauseous at the unfinished thought. The Min Pin wasn't good at playing dumb or fooling himself. But he would damn sure try if it meant the ugly truth would stay nothing but an unwelcome thought.

"You're in the wrong line of work if you're feeling sorry for the subjects." the boy human said as he stood in the doorway of the room. "I know you don't want to be like Ms. Lucy Stillman, who I don't really trust. She ends up looking guilty after every experiment. Why the hell is she Warren's second in command?"

"Yeah, I guess you're right." the girl human said with a sigh and a shrug.

"Of course I'm right! Now let's go take this shit to storage before Warren gets on our asses for _slacking off_." He scoffed before turning out of the door and into the hallway. Not even giving the chance for the other to reply.

The girl human just nodded, even though she knew that the other wasn't looking, and proceeded out of the room. Not sparing a second glance at Desmond through the transparent wall.

The door to the now empty room, shut close with a faint _click _that sound a lot louder to Desmond than he believed it should've. Desmond's senses seemed to heighten as he tried to figure out what just happened. His breath was harsh yet almost silent. He felt his heart thumping against his chest as if it was trying to break out. His eyes were wide open, looking but not seeing as he took in his surroundings. He flattened his ears against his head to block out the ringing that was coming from the deafening silence.

Nipping at his paw to make sure this wasn't just some fucked up twisted nightmare; the Min Pin accepted his reality. Desmond looked up at the bright florescent lights beaming down on him and squinted his eyes.

_'Is this how it's going to be for the rest of my life?' _He felt his eyes prickle with tears that threatened to spill over at any second. **"Clay. What did they do to you?"** The puppy whispered, already knowing the horrible truth. Clay Kaczmarek, the Anatolian Shepherd with three legs, his only friend was...dead. The tears flowed freely now.

Dropping his gaze to the floor underneath his paws, Desmond ran over his reality one more time through his mind. After a minute or two, the Min Pin threw his head back and let out a loud, sorrow filled howl. Letting anyone who could hear it, know the pain and sorrow he was feeling at the moment.

_****WYB**WYB**WYB****_

_Lucy's POV_

My heart shattered at the sound Desmond emitted. I was walking towards Subject 16's room...or what used to be Subject 16's room, in order to collect the video footage from the camera hidden in the wall, when the saddest wail I have ever heard rang out from Desmond's room next door. I froze in my stride and turned my body and attention towards the sound. It sounded so mournful, so distressed, and so...so pitiful.

"I'm so sorry Desmond." I whispered, walking up to his closed door. The wail had died down to an almost silent whimper by now. I put my hand on the door and stood there just staring at it, wondering how the puppy Min Pin inside would react if I walked in.

_'Will he be angry at me and try to attack even though he only comes up to my calf? Or is he so broken from Clay's death that he won't even look at me?' _I thought of the worst case scenarios, before pacing left and right of the door a little.

_'Wait...how would he even __**know**__ that Clay died?' _The thought made me cease my pacing and stare at Desmond's door once more. '_He has to know...right? Isn't that the reason behind his wailing? But...how would he __**know**__?! Who told him?! What if he doesn't know and his wailing for a totally different reason? What if he's hurt and crying out for help?! Oh my gosh! What am I still standing here for?' _I stopped mentally questioning of everything besides life itself and reached for the knob of Desmond's door when...

_***Ms. Stillman! Forget about Subject Sixteen's footage for now. I require your assistance in the Common Room at once!***_ I jumped violently as Vidic's voice rang over the intercom, traveling down the empty hall I was in. I looked up at the speaker box hanging from the ceiling a few feet away from me as if it were Vidic himself I was staring at.

_'Damn it! I just need a little bit of time. Just to make sure Desmond is OK.' _Without a second thought, I grabbed the doorknob and began to turn it but Vidic's voice hindered my movements once again.

_***Do hurry Ms. Stillman! I don't have all day to wait for you and your incompetence!***_ His voice boomed out of the speaker as if he knew exactly where I was and what I was doing...or planning on doing. I gripped the doorknob harder, so hard that my knuckles turned white and bit my lip until I tasted the coppery taste of blood on my tongue. But I gave in and let go. There was a red half-moon mark on my palm from my death grip on the doorknob. I took a deep breath and let it out as a heavy sigh before turning away from Desmond's door. I didn't stop or look back at his door because I knew I wouldn't be able to leave if I did.

_The Common Room_

The Common Room is a room that is located on the top floor of Abstergo. Floor eighteen, where all major experiments take place. In the middle of the room, there is a large examination/experimenting table and lab bench with a computer located right next to it. Here, the less "messy", more "cleaner" experiments take place. The room also has stark white walls and a high ceiling.

The wall on the right when you come in has a door that can only be open with a card key and a fingerprint scan. The door slides open to a room where current subjects are held, for easy access of course. No one has time to run all the way down to floor 6 to get a current subject every time it's needed.

Abstergo works like this, the higher up you go, the better the floors become. Starting at the bottom floor or parking lot is the worst floor of them all. It's never looked nice in all my years I worked here. Almost all the lights are busted and the pavement is beyond damaged. For a high paying company like Abstergo, you'd expect better but I guess all the wealth shows at the higher levels.

Floors one through five are all storage. Then floors six through eight are where the 'subjects' are held. Those floors aren't so bad, just not up-to-date with technology is all. Then the floors in between eight and seventeen are where experiments and research is done. The higher the floor, the cleaner the experiments and the higher tech the rooms become. Then there is floor eighteen, strictly created for a purposeful, expensive, best-technology-known-to-man filled room...The Common Room, where the major projects take place.

Back to describing the room in question, the wall just opposite of the current subject's room are four giant windows that have one single desk in front of them which allows whoever sits at it to turn around and have basically a bird's eye view over the city. You'd think as an animal testing facility, Abstergo would be a little less "in plain sight" and more hidden from the world. But I guess the government doesn't care as long as they get their money's worth, pathetic.

_****WYB**WYB**WYB****_

_Lucy's POV_

I walked through the automatic sliding door of the Common Room to see Vidic standing over a weird looking machine that was set on the examination table. The machine was relatively small in size, as if it were shaped for a tiny head and had about six thin cords coming from it.

I walk up to the table to get a better look at the weird looking machine, wondering where it came from and what it could possibly be used for. Upon closer examination, I see that the cords are wires that have sensory pads attached to the ends of them and one thick black cord connecting to the computer. I've never seen anything like this before. I tilt my head in confusion before looking up at Vidic for answers.

The man hasn't looked up once since I walked into the room. I lean a bit on the table, standing on my tippy toes in order to get a look at what he was studying so intently. Looking down, once in the right position, I see a booklet open to a diagram of the machine I'm hovering over. A manual, I deduce simply. At the top of the page, I make out the letters that were separated by periods upside down. A...N...I...M...U...S is what the word spelled out.

"Animus...?" I said quietly, trying out the foreign word on my tongue. Vidic's eyes snapped up to meet mine at the sound of my voice. The sudden eye contact startled me into jumping back which in turn caused that odd machine to follow my movements and head towards the floor. I quickly caught it before it had a chance to properly be introduced to the floor. I breathed a deep sigh of relief while placing the thing back on the table carefully. I look up at Vidic who just gave me an exasperated look before turning his attention back to the manual.

After a few minutes of silence, Vidic spoke, using a monotone voice as if he were talking to someone who was incredibly slow, he said without looking up, "Animal, Nerve and Intellect, Memory, Unit, System." catching me off guard.

"Excuse me?" I said, probably with a dumb look in my face.

He sighed and rubbed his temple with two fingers before lifting his head up to stare me in the eye.

"Animal. Nerve and Intellect. Memory. Unit. System. Is what I said Ms. Stillman. Animus for short." He said through gritted teeth. I open my mouth to respond but got cut off before I can even utter a sound.

"Please Ms. Stillman; is it not enough that your single celled brain comes up with statements that could lower a whole nation's IQ level? but do you actually have to voice them too?" He asked in a completely exhausted voice, dropping down into the chair next to him and putting his forehead in his palm.

Now that I have a chance to get a good look at him, Vidic looks completely drained. There are bags under his eyes and his eyes are slightly bloodshot. He massages the wrinkles on his forehead, no doubt from scrunching his eyebrows together in either confusion or irritation. His beard is shaggy and messy looking, I believe that it's from him scratching through it while in thought.

All in all, Vidic looks like shit. And he looks like shit because he's been working on this new project. This means, this new project must be _very_ important.

I swallow down the lump that had risen in my throat. Why exactly is this project so important? And if it really _is _so important, what does that entitle for Desmond. I have to know.

"I'm sorry, Vidic" I apologize without looking at him, but looking slowly towards the Animus. "Would you care to explain what exactly the Animus' purpose is? Just so I know the basics of this new project." I ask in a small voice, turning my full attention onto him slowly, not wanting to anger Vidic any more than I already have. An angry Vidic won't give me answers.

Vidic sighs once more before speaking. "The Animus is device that, once on the animal's head, allows one to monitor the stability and endurance of said animal."

"What are the sensory pads for?" I ask in order to keep the conversation going.

"They will monitor heart rate, internal temperature and nerve reaction."

"And that the black cord transmits all the information to the computer, where it can be stored on a memory chip." I say, looking at the computer.

"Well aren't you just brilliant, Ms. Stillman." Vidic says, sarcasm dripping with every word.

"Why exactly do we want to observe the internal progression of the subject when doing this project?"

He looked up and stared at me with an unreadable expression. Squinting his eyes a bit, as if he was thinking if he should tell me or not. He closed his eyes and sighed, _again._ I mean geez; is that the only thing he knows how to do?

After a minute or two, Vidic opened his eyes but didn't look me in the eye. More like past me, staring off into space with a look of defeat.

"There is a drug we are testing that will enhance and perfect the natural ability of a being. Or that's what the drug is hypothesized to do." he paused for a second, eyes glazing over, losing focus completely as he continued. "It could turn an innocent 13-year-old child into a dangerous cold blooded killing machine. With one dose and bit of training, they could take out an entire army fleet in half the time it would normally take." A small smile graced his lip as he said the next part. "Just imagine Ms. Stillman; a world where peace is evident all over the globe. Laws are respected and feared, as they should be. Crime and injustice are extinct. All due to a fear that is enforced by those who, under Abstergo's influence of course have had a dose of the drug."

"What is the name of the drug, if I may ask?"

Vidic's smile drops back into a frown before his eyes refocus and snap to mine. A look of confusion crossed his features for a split second, as if he had forgotten that I was standing in front of him this whole time. He looks at the Animus for a while, eyes scanning over every inch of the device. Silence falls upon us and for a moment I thought he may not have heard what I said. That thought disappeared as fast as it had appeared when Vidic spoke without looking away from the Animus.

"You want to know the name?" he asked me.

"Yes sir." I reply.

He looks me in the eye again, nods, and then utters the name of the drug.

"The Apple of Eden"

TBC

_****WYB**WYB**WYB****_

_Author's Notes_

I am so terribly sorry for my absence. I have been so busy with life these days. New job, moving, and testing for school, just busy, busy, busy! It would be when I want to start writing stories that all this shit starts happening. -_-

But it's Spring Break now! WOO HOO! I'll try to have the next chapter up by the end of this week. The next chapter is finally going to introduce our German shepherd; _Altair_, and our Golden retriever,_ Ezio_. Can't wait! ^x^

BTW…I love all of you followers and favorites'. You are the ones who give me motivation to keep writing. Let's thank **CutestOfZeus **for following the story. That email of them following my story is what pushed me to finish this chapter, even though I still have so many other things to do today.

_**THNX for reading…Review if you want. **_**\(^.^)/**


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